


spinning round a sword as if to dare

by inmylife



Series: 2019 rookies in college semester 1 [1]
Category: Cherry Bullet (Girl Group)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F, Gen, Trans Female Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-02
Updated: 2019-02-02
Packaged: 2019-10-21 03:53:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17635520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inmylife/pseuds/inmylife
Summary: “Seriously, though, I love that you guys have the trans flag on the ceiling but why would you do your makeup in here with the light like that?”“Wonyoung says it, uhh, it filters the light so it’s not as shocking or something. I don’t get it. But I like having it on the ceiling. It’s nice to look up and see it. Does that make sense?”“Oh, it does. Sounds like something I’d do. But my cis girlfriend wouldn’t let me.”“Jiwon would totally let you, I don’t know what you’re on about.”“You know, you’re right and she would, but that would make the light hell for doing makeup.”"So you wouldn't do it. I don't know why you're telling me these lies.""It's because I love you."





	spinning round a sword as if to dare

**Author's Note:**

> title is from gravity by zlata ognevich
> 
> the summary is a scene i couldn't work in here! if i make this a series, all the summaries will be deleted scenes like that.
> 
> lastly, i should note that i'm cis, and i'm basing certain things off of what i know from my friends who are trans. if something written here is offensive/insensitive, please let me know so i can edit the fic accordingly and learn from that mistake.

She pokes herself in the eye again. “Ow,” she says, even though no one is in the room to hear her. 

May sighs, deeply, and glares at her cell phone. She really doesn’t want to do this. 

But she calls Yuju anyway. 

“Yes, my child?” 

“Mom,” May says, hoping that she sounds as reluctant and deadpan as she feels inside right now. “How do you eyeliner?”

“How do I what eyeliner?” asks Yuju, puzzled-seeming. 

“How do you… eyeliner. Like, how do you  _ do _ eyeliner.” She pauses for breath, or to collect her thoughts, or something - bad idea, because then everything spills out. “Because I have a date with Kim Chaeyeon tonight and -”

“Oh!” Yuju says very loudly into the phone. It startles May and she pokes herself again, huffing in frustration. “I’ll be right over. Oh, my baby, I’m gonna help you contour, I’m gonna help you pick out your lipstick…”

“Mom - mom, no - I just wanted you to  _ tell _ me -” 

Yuju hangs up.  _ Fuck _ , thinks May. 

 

Yuju’s there after five minutes, which scares May because she knows Yuju’s dorm is at least a ten minute walk and that’s when it’s  _ not _ snowing. So either Yuju got Haeyoon, their resident car gay, to drive her over here, or she’s not human. May would believe either of those things. Yuju has her shit way too together to just be a senior in college. She’s gotta be some kind of cryptid. 

Wonyoung’s there too, by then, looking way too nice in a sparkly, skintight strapless dress (and no tights - Wonyoung must also be not human, then, considering it’s -5 Celsius outside). May’s trying really hard not to look at Wonyoung because every time she does she gets this irrational flash of jealousy - she and Wonyoung have the same body, after all, but Wonyoung has this insane confidence in her own skin. Maybe it comes from being out longer, maybe it’s just how Wonyoung is, but whenever May sees Wonyoung like that - high heels resting against the desk, knees bent, tilted back in her desk chair like that with anyone able to look up her skirt if they tried hard enough - something hardens inside her because she wants to be that comfortable in her own skin. 

Also, Wonyoung can do eyeliner without stabbing herself in the eye, and can contour like hell. Maybe that’s another thing that comes with being out since she was fourteen. Maybe Wonyoung, like Yuju, is just a cryptid. 

She’s digressing. 

Anyway, Yuju doesn’t bother knocking - damn upperclassmen with no sense of privacy - and just slams the door open, causing May to get concealer on the strap of her dress. “ _ Fuck _ , mom,” she says. “You scared me.” 

All Yuju does is smile. “My daughter. Come here.” May looks away from the mirror and sees Yuju beckoning. “Let me look at you straight in the face.” 

“That sounds weird, your words sound weird,” May grumbles, but she obliges anyway, walking up to the doorway to stand under the closet light with a heavy sigh. 

Yuju inspects May from arm’s length for a moment. “Go to the bathroom,” she says finally. “I’ll be right there - which side of the dresser is yours?”

“The right side,” May answers. “Why are  _ you _ gonna look through my makeup, mom, it’s my makeup -”

“Just go,” Yuju orders, and May does as she says. 

 

“So why’s Yuanying-”

“Wonyoung,” May corrects. 

“Wonyoung, whatever - why’s she getting dressed up? I thought it was just you going on a date with this person?” 

“Wonyoung’s going to a party with her friend Yujin at UMass,” May explains. “She’s not even leaving for another two hours, she just wanted to put her dress on and shit.” 

“She’s valid,” Yuju nods. “Now, May, I love you, but most of what you did is wrong, so I’m just gonna take everything off.” She produces a magic wipe from god knows where and dabs it on the strap of May’s dress before pouring some makeup remover on a washcloth. 

What ends up happening is she makes May sit on the counter. “I just wanted you to teach me,” May complains. “If you do it this way I’ll never learn how to do it myself.” 

“Shh,” hushes Yuju. “Stop moving your face.” She works in silence for another couple minutes before adding, “besides. What if I want to do your makeup forever.”

“You’re graduating in a semester,” May tells her. 

“Shut up, it’s not happening,” Yuju hisses. “And stop moving your face!” 

 

“You look really nice,” Wonyoung says encouragingly. “Like, really. The dress is great, and Yuju did a really good job with your face. But the thing is you’re gonna look really pretty anyway, May, so like -” 

“But I’m so nervous.” May looks down. “I’m wearing flats and I’m way taller than she’ll ever be in heels, and -” 

“Shush.” Yuju glares at her. “You think me and Jiwon are a great couple, right?” 

May nods. “You guys are the best moms.” 

“You and Kim Chaeyeon are gonna be a great couple too. Trust me. Sophomore year I was so nervous about, like, just Jiwon and everything about her, but turns out she liked me too. Me and my bell-bottom pants and my closet jokes every five seconds.” 

“You guys are terrible,” May mutters, but she doesn’t mean it. Yuju, well - Yuju is her  _ mom _ . In some ways Yuju is more her mom than her actual mom is.

“And then Kim Chanmi - not Haeyoon’s Kim Chanmi, Kim Chanmi who graduated last year - sat me down and said, you know what, Choi Yuju? You’re amazing and Heo Jiwon is gonna love you. So, you listen to me, Hirokawa May. You’re amazing and Kim Chaeyeon is gonna love you.” 

May thinks she might actually cry. 

**Author's Note:**

> yuju's relationship with may is HEAVILY inspired by my college parents, grace, ivy, and oliver, who are the most fantastic people ever and they'll never read this but i'm sticking their names here because i LOVE THEM so much.
> 
> yes this explicitly takes place within the 5cc nd that's gonna be okay 
> 
> also i have to thank daniel and milo, because the premise of this cherry bullet au is heavily drawn from both [daniel's chatfic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16406579) and [milo's awesome collegeverse](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1007580).
> 
> find me on twitter @kangsyejin!


End file.
